Apparatus for combining partition and box blank

ABSTRACT

The assembly of a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank to form a combination partition box in collapsed condition for shipping and use.

United States Patent Friend et a1. 1

[ APPARATUS FOR COMBINING PARTITION AND BOX BLANK [75] Inventors: William H. Friend, Martinsville,

N.J Stuart L. Natof, Lovettsville, Va.; Eugene A. Reiter, Morrisville; David W. Eudman, Doylestown,

both of Pa.

[73] Assignee: Union Camp Corporation, Wayne,

' NY, I

[22] Filed: Oct. 2, 1972 21 Appl. No: 293,941

[52] US. Cl. 93/37 R, 93/38, 93/39 R [51] lint. Cl B3lb 11/02 [58] Field of Search 93/37 R, 37 SP, 37 EC, 93/38, 39 R June 4, 1974 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,046,985 7/1936 Wilkins 93/37 SP 2,706,935 4/1955 Pasjack 93/37 R 2,789,481 4/1957 Palmer 83/37 R 2,820,570 1/1958 Ringler 93/37 SP X 3,101,652 8/1963 lmielinski 93/37 SP 3,134,308 5/1964 Ali-Oglu 3,483,802 12/1969 Heyne 93/38 Primary ExaminerMilton S. Mehr Assistant Examiner.1ames F. Coan Attorney, Agent, or FirmCharles P. Bauer [57] ABSTRACT The assembly of a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank to form a combination partition boxin collapsed condition for shipping and use.

11 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUH 4 \974 PMENFEBJW 4 m4 Tin-7.11..

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DRUM f? TO KICK'ER BOX KICKER CLUTCH GEFH? PEDUCER RDHESIVE. SECTION CLUTCH EME'FEHJUH 4 9974 gn g Ticl , m T Y O M m m e TRHNSMISS/ON SHRFIQ PRR'TITION CONVEYOR DRIVE TO MFPCHINQ APPARATUS FOR COMBINING PARTITIONAND BOX BLANK BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,580,471, issued May 25, 1971, and in copending US. application Ser. No. 143,391, filed May 14, l97l,'a collapsible cellular box partition and the method and apparatus for the continuous manufacture of such partition. This application discloses and claims the apparatus for combining such collapsible cellular partition with a box blank to form a collapsed shipping container which can be set up into a partition box.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide apparatus for assembling a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank to form a combination partition box in collapsed condition. Box blanks are fed onto a conveyor for carrying the blanks through the various operations. Adhesive is applied to the blank to bond the partition to the blank. The blanks then pass beneath a turning drum section where the collapsible cellular partitions are gripped on the drum'and then placed on the blank in exact register. The panels of the box blank are then folded over the partition to complete the formation of the box blank around the partition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description which is to be taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing how the partition is to be placed on top of a box blank on which lines of adhesive have been applied;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the carton blank of FIG. 1 after the partition has been applied and the blank folded into a tube around the partition;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the machine of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the machine of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the hold down pusher affixed to the blank conveyors showing the pusher for moving the blank and a sword which prevents the blank from riding over the top of the pusher;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view' showing the hold down pusher of FIG. 5 and the reference line blade which engages a slot on the box blank and holds it in lateral registration;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the separation and holding section of the machine for picking a single partition from the stream of overlapped partitions and advancing it to a receiving table over the machine;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the side registration finger mechanism to position the partition laterally on the receiving table;

FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the turning drum section showing the sucker mechanism for feeding a partition to the grippers on the drum;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of one of the grippers on the drum of FIG. 9;

FIGS. 11 and 12 combined show an isometric view .of the common drive system for the machine.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS the box blank 21. As the partition units come off theend of the machine, described and claimed in copending application Ser. No. 143,391, they are on a conveyor section with the partition units in stepped or shingled registry. It is in this form that the partition units enter the separating and holding section of the present machine, as hereinafter described. The box blanks are received from the conventional printing and slotting operations in the box plant and fed into the kicker feed mechanism of the present'machine, as hereinafter described. General Description Aside'elevation of the machine of the present invention is shown in FIG. 3. Box blanks 21 are fed by hand into a kicker feeder mechanism. Individual blanks are fed, one at a time, from this feeder onto a chain type, blank conveyor. This conveyor is equipped with a plurality of sets of lugs which engage the trailing edge of the blank and push it, in controlled registration, through the following operations. The blank is positioned so that the slots of the blanks are in line with the path of motion of the blank through the machine.

The blank first passes through an adhesive section which applies the adhesive to bond the partition and blank together. This adhesive is applied to the upper surface of the box blank, which is actually the inside surface of the box, as it is passing through the machine.

The blanks then pass beneath a turning drum section where the partition 20 is placed on the blank, in exact register both laterally and vertically. The box/partition combination then passes into a folder which completes the formation of the box around the partition.

FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the machine. The flow of box blanks through this mechanism was described above. Partitions enter the machine at right angles to the flow of the box blanks, as indicated in the figure.

Partitions arrive at the machine shingled one atop the other, as they are produced on the partition machine. As the leading edge of this shingled stream of partitions enters the machine, the first partition is separated from the stream and fed out onto a receiving table, above the path of the blank.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the partition is then movedparallel to, but in the opposite direction, of blank flow. It comes to rest against a series of stops which register it in the machine direction, which is synonymous with the direction of box depth.

A finger mechanism indicated in FIG. 3 and shown in more detail in FIG. 8, thenmoves the partition laterally to bring it against a side stop, which registers it in the cross machine direction.

Atthe proper time in the cycle, thepartition is advanced into grippers on the turning drum which carry it around and deposit it on the surface of the blank as the blank passes beneath the drum. Kicker Feeder The kicker feeder 22 is a standard item which has been modified to some extent for this use. It includes a means of accurately positioning the blanks in the hopper so that the left hand slot 21a of each blank always falls in the same position relative to machine frame, regardless of blank size or design. This is accomplished by installing a narrow metal bar 23 on the face of the left hand feed gate 23a, which is fixed in position. This bar protrudes so that it engages the slot in each box as they are placed in the hopper. In this manner the entire stack of blanks is in alignment and each blank will be positioned accurately as it is fed from the kicker feeder into the blank conveyor. There is also a right feed gate 23b. These feed gates are positioned to permit only a single blank to feed from the bottom of the stack. Blank Conveyor The blank conveyor (FIGS. 3 and 4) consists ofa set of feed rollers 24 and 25 adjacent to the kicker feeder and four runs of roller chain 26 spaced across the width of the machine. The roller chains ride in slotted recesses 25a in the feed roller 25. The upper feed roller 24 also has slotted recesses 24a to provide clearance for pushers 27 affixed to the roller chains 26 (FIGS. and 6).

Each of the pushers 27 is made up of an L -shaped member 270 affixed to the roller chain and a sword 27b likewise secured to the chain. The sword 27b projects over the rear edge of the blank and prevents the blank from riding over the top of the pusher. In addition the left most conveyor chain, which is on the fixed reference line, also carries a slot blade 28 affixed to the chain 26 just ahead of the pushers 27. This blade engages the slot 21b in the blank (FIG. 1) and holds the blank in lateral registration throughout its passage through the machine. The position of the slot blade 28 relative to the position of the pusher 27 must be varied for blanks with different flap configurations.

For blanks where the ends of the flaps are not in line the positions of the pushers 27 can be varied by shifting the roller chains 26 relative to each other.

Adhesive Printer The general arrangement of this section is shown in FIG. 3. It consists ofa large print roll 29 which carries a print mat for applying a pattern of adhesive 21c to the upper surface of the box blank. Controlled quantities of adhesive are applied to the print that from the transfer roll 30. Adhesive is picked up by this roll from the pan 3! below it and excess adhesive doctored off by blade 32. This blade is easily adjustable so that the quantity of adhesive can be varied as desired.

The blank is held in position to contact the print mat by the backup plates 33 situated directly below the print cylinder. These plates are adjustable in height to compensate for variation in box blank thickness and to provide a means for adjusting print pressure.

Hot melt adhesive may be utilized to ensure a fast bite between the partition and the box and prevent relative motion of the two during the box folding operations which follow the assembly operation. This adhesive is applied by nozzles 34 in two short beads 21d, one just inside the left hand score of the blank, the other just inside the right hand score. Application is by con ventional equipment. It will be understood that any quick tack adhesive or a double face adhesive tape -may be used instead of the hot melt adhesive.

Although the adhesive pattern shows the adhesive lines running in the machine direction, it will be understood that such lines can run in other directions or that other configurations can be used.

Separating and Holding Section A side elevation of this section appears in FIG. 7. Partitions in an overlapped stepped stream enter this section directly from the partition machine, as indicated by the conveyor 35. At specific, controlled intervals the separating rolls 36 and 37 are moved together to engage the leading edge of the leading partition and pull it out of the stream. The single partition is advanced on the series of tape conveyors 38 to spaced stops 39 positioned across the section. Again, at the proper point in the cycle, these stops are lowered and the partition advanced by the tape conveyor and a set of feed rollers 40 and 41 onto the receiving table 42. The stops 39 are spring loaded and normally in an up position. The lowering of the stops 39 is synchronized with the operation of the rest of the machine.

In the normal situation, with a partition resting on the receiving table, a pneumatically operated pusher 43 actuated by an air cylinder 44, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 advances the partition onto a conveyor 45. This conveyor carries the partition against a series of stops 46 which register the partition precisely in the machine direction as described previously.

FIG. 8 shows the concept of a finger mechanism used to position the partition in the cross machine direction. After the partition is firmly against the stops 46 and is registered in the machine direction, a finger 47 reaches out over the partition, bringing a foot 48 into contact with its upper surface. This foot then serves to drag the partition laterally against a stop 49, which is the locater for the lateral position. The machine frame beneath where this finger mechanism operates is recessed, as shown in FIG. 8. The downward pressure of the finger deforms the partition into this recess, bending the paper in a way which gives the partition considerable stiffness thus preventing the partition from buckling or deforming when it comes against the stop. It will be noted that the finger is provided with horizontal and vertical motion to position the partition. This is accomplished by means of a rotatable cam 50 for horizontal motion and a pneumatic actuator 51 for vertical motion. The bar 52 for the finger is connected to the cam 50 and the actuator 51 through a roller mechanism to provide the desired motion.

Turning Drum Section At the proper point in the machine cycle, after the partition has been registered in both machine and cross machine directions, the stops 46, shown in FIG. 6, drop out of the path of the partition and a' series of suction cups 53 come up from beneath the partition and attach to its lower surface. This series of suction cups 53 is mounted on a frame 54 which moves the cups forward to advance the partition into the grippers 55 on the turning drum 56.

The turning drum is a rotating mechanism which carries a series of mechanically actuated jaws 55a and 5512 which are in line across the face 'of the drum, parallel to the axis of rotation of the drum. As the jaws pass through the top position (FIG. 9) the suction cup mechanism mentioned previously overspeeds the partition so that it is driven into the jaws. Jaws and partition travel for a short distance at the same speed. During this interval, when there is no relative motion between the jaws and the partition, the jaws close, firmly gripping the partition. At this moment, the suction cups 53 release the partition and return to their original position ready to grip and move the next partition.

The turning drum grippers carry the partition around and as they approach their lowest position, the partition is brought into contact with the surface of the box blank 21 and pressure is applied to hold the partition and blank in firm contact for a brief interval. In this interval, the gripper jaws open and tilt forward releasing the partition and moving out of the way of partition and blank.

The combined structure is then carried by the blank conveyor 26 into a folder which turns the outside panels of the blank through 180 and superimposes them on top of the partition 21. The adhesive pattern on the blank serves to secure the partition to all four panels of the blank.

As the box blank/partition assembly enters the folder section, adhesive is applied to the box blank for making the manufacturers joint and completing the formation of the blank into -a tube, as shown in FIG. 2.

Drive System Both the partition machine (Application Ser. No. 143,391 and the machine of the present invention operate from a common drive system or from synchronized multiple drives.

The operation of the machine for combining a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank to form a combination partition box in collapsed condition should be apparent from the foregoing description. The apparatus provides the means for producing such structure in a simple, economical and effective manner.

Thus, among others, the several aforenoted objects and advantages are most effectively attained. Although a somewhat preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed and described in detail herein, it should be understood that this invention is in no sense limited thereby and its scope is to be determined by that of the appended claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed is: 1. A machine for combining a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank having a plurality of panels and adapted to be folded into a tube comprising:

means for feeding a collapsible cellular partition onto a continuously rotating turning drum;

gripping means on the said drum to hold the said partition in a predetermined position during rotation of the drum;

meansfor feeding a box blank onto a movable blank conveyor;

means for holding the box blank on the conveyor in a predetermined transverse position;

means for applying adhesive to the upper surface of the blank in a predetermined pattern;

means for advancing the blank held on the conveyor beneath the turning drum;

means to continuously rotate the drum and advance the blank conveyor in relation to each other including holding means so that a partition positioned on the drum will be placed in registration on certain panels of the blank positioned on the conveyor; and

means for folding certain other panels of the blank over the partition to complete the formation of a tube around the partition.

2. The machine of claim 1 wherein a kicker feeder is provided to hold a stack of box blanks and feed such blanks one at a time onto the movable blank conveyor.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein the kicker feeder includes a metal bar positioned to engage the same slot in successive blanks and align the entire stack of blanks.

4. The machine of claim 1 wherein the blank conveyor comprises a plurality of roller chains spaced across the width of the machine, pushers affixed to the chains to push the rear edges of the blank, and a sword member'projecting over at least one of the pushers to prevent the blank from riding over the top of the pusher.

5. The machine of claim 4 wherein a slot blade is affixed to at least one of the chains ahead of the pushers, which blade is adapted to engage the same slot of each successive blank and hold the blank in lateral registration throughout its passage through the machine.

6. The machine of claim I wherein the means for applying adhesive to the upper surface of the blank includes means to apply beads of quick tack adhesive between the partition and the unfolded blank to ensure a fast bite between the partition and the blank and prevent relative motion of the two during the box folding operation.

7. The machine of claim 1 wherein said holding means includes a separating and holding section for holding a partition and then feeding it onto the turning drum.

8. The machine of claim 7 wherein the separating and holding section comprises a receiving table, a partition conveyor to advance a partition from the table to the turning drum, a pusher to move a partition from the table to the conveyor, movable stops to hold a partition on the conveyor until the turning drum is ready to receive such partition, and means to move the partition from the conveyor to the gripping means on the said drum.

9. The machine of claim 7 wherein the separating and holding section includes a finger mechanism comprising a foot adapted and positioned to contact the upper surface of a partition, means to move the foot horizontally and vertically, and a fixed stop whereby the foot will move downward to contact the partition and then move laterally to bring the partition against the stop in a desired position. Y

10. The machine of claim 9 wherein the frame of the machine is recessed adjacent the said fixed stop and below the said foot whereby movement of the foot downward against a partition will bend the partition to give such partition stiffness and prevent the partition from buckling when it is moved against the said fixed stop.

Ill. The machine of claim 8 wherein the means to move the partition from the partition conveyor to the gripping means on the turning drum comprises a series of suction cups which attach to the partition and positively move it into the said gripping means.

a s a 

1. A machine for combining a collapsible cellular partition with a box blank having a plurality of panels and adapted to be folded into a tube comprising: means for feeding a collapsible cellular partition onto a continuously rotating turning drum; gripping means on the said drum to hold the said partition in a predetermined position during rotation of the drum; means for feeding a box blank onto a movable blank conveyor; means for holding the box blank on the conveyor in a predetermined transverse position; means for applying adhesive to the upper surface of the blank in a predetermined pattern; means for advancing the blank held on the conveyor beneath the turning drum; means to continuously rotate the drum and advance the blank conveyor in relation to each other including holding means so that a partition positioned on the drum will be placed in registration on certain panels of the blank positioned on the conveyor; and means for folding certain other panels of the blank over the partition to complete the formation of a tube around the partition.
 2. The machine of claim 1 wherein a kicker feeder is provided to hold a stack of box blanks and feed such blanks one at a time onto the movable blank conveyor.
 3. The machine of claim 2 wherein the kicker feeder includes a metal bar positioned to engage the same slot in successive blanks and align the entire stack of blanks.
 4. The machine of claim 1 wherein the blank conveyor comprises a plurality of roller chains spaced across the width of the machine, pushers affixed to the chains to push the rear edges of the blank, and a sword member projecting over at least one of the pushers to prevent the blank from riding over the top of the pusher.
 5. The machine of claim 4 wherein a slot blade is affixed to at least one of the chains ahead of the pushers, which blade is adapted to engage the same slot of each successive blank and hold the blank in lateral registration throughout its passage through the machine.
 6. The machine of claim 1 wherein the means for applying adhesive to the upper surface of the blank includes means to apply beads of quick tack adhesive between the partition and the unfolded blank to ensure a fast bite between the partition and the blank and prevent relative motion of the two during the box folding operation.
 7. The machine of claim 1 wherein said holding means includes a separating and holding section for holding a partition and then feeding it onto the turning drum.
 8. The machine of claim 7 wherein the separating and holding section comprises a receiving table, a partition conveyor to advance a partition from the table to the turning drum, a pusher to move a partition from the table to the conveyor, movable stops to hold a partition on the conveyor until the turning drum is ready to receive such partition, and means to move the partition from the conveyor to the gripping means on the said drum.
 9. The machine of claim 7 wherein the separating and holding section includes a finger mechanism comprising a foot adapted and positioned to contact the upper surface of a partition, means to move the foot horizontally and vertically, and a fixed stop whereby the foot will move downward to contact the partition and then move laterally to bring the partition against the stop in a desired position.
 10. The machine of claim 9 wherein the frame of the machine is recessed adjacent the said fixed stop and below the said foot whereby movement of the foot downward against a partition will bend the paRtition to give such partition stiffness and prevent the partition from buckling when it is moved against the said fixed stop.
 11. The machine of claim 8 wherein the means to move the partition from the partition conveyor to the gripping means on the turning drum comprises a series of suction cups which attach to the partition and positively move it into the said gripping means. 